Isaac church



@atten tetes stest @time ISAAC CHURCH, JR., OF NORWALK, CONNECTICUT.

yLetters .Patent No. 79,204, dated June 23 1868.

IMPROVEMENT IN- OPERATING SLIDE-VALVES.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:l

Be it known that I, ISAAC CHURCH, Jr., of Norwalk, in -the county of Fairfield, and State of Connecticut, have inventeda new andruseful Improvement in Operating the Slide-Valves of Steam-Engines and Pumps, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, forming pai-.t ofthisspecication, 'and in whichv I Figures l and 2 represent longitudinal sectional elevations of a steam-cylinder and piston, with valve or valves connected therewith, embracing my improvement, and showingthe working parts in diiferent positions.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts. i This, my improvement, is applicable, among other purposes, to direct double-acting steam-pumps, andit will suiiice here to regard the same in such connection. Said improvement is based upon that principle of action, which has before been applied in various forms,ri:n which the valve controlling the action of the piston is shot or worked alternately in opposite directions by steam admitted through the agency of secondary valves that are opened and closed by the motion of the piston; but this, my invention, differs from previous devices of the char'-l acterreferred to in causing the main valve to be thrown or shot by steam admitted through puppet-valves, so arranged as that the engine-piston operates in a direct manner upon thc'r stems to lift, and, it may be, also, to' drop them, and whereby not only are all outside connections for operating the valves dispensed with, but a most simple and eicient interior valve-operating action orfarrangemcnt secured. i

Referring to the accompanying drawing, A represents the main -or working-cylinder, and B the reciproeating piston therein, with its rod C. The piston B it is preferred .to makewith bevelled or curvcd edges, to facilitate the lifting-of the puppet-valves, as hereinafter described, butthis maytc a greater or lesser extent, be` dispensed with, by suitably bevelling or shaping the ends of the stems to the-puppet-valves. I) is the mainl slide-valve, of a piston-shaped character orconstruction, hung frec to reciprocate in a'cylinder, E, `and formed with heads or partitions, a a and b b', leaving spaces c, c', and cl between them.v F F are steam-ports or pas# sages, connecting the valve-cylinder E near its centre with the ends Por adjoining portions ofthe main cylinder. G vis the steam-inlet pipe to the valve-box or 'chambenthe same op'eninginto a passage, H, which communicates, by openings e e andfj', with the valve-cylinder E. l l

I I are puppet-.valves to the openings e e. These valves are provided with stems g g', which project down at their ends or points into the working-cylinder A. I J isv an exhaust-cavity, made in the cylinder E, at or near its cen-tre, and communicating with an exhaustpipe or passage, vJ,'which has branching from it passages h 7L', terminating in contracted openings z'z" to the cylinder E, near opposite ends of Having thus'described how the severaliworking-parts are or may be constructed and arranged, it will suice` here brieiy to referto the operation, which is as follows: l

supposing the parts to be in the position represented in tig. 1' of the drawing, then the piston B, which, in .arriving at such position,1has lifted the puppet-valve Iby its stem g', is readygto receive steam on the back of it-to propel it in the opposite direction, the puppct-valve I', in being thus opened, having admitted steam through the-opening e", so as to throw thc main valve D to the left; said valve, after it has been started, being checked in its throw, by the steam admitted to the cylinder E in rear of the valve gradually escaping by the contracted aperture c" and passage h to the exhaust-outletA J', or said valve may be 'otherwise checked or cushioned, This throw or change in position of the valve D opens the cylinder-port or passage F through the space or cavity c of the valve, o'pcningj, and passage H to the inlet-pipe Gr, and at the same time opens the passage F through the cavity or space d of the valve to the exhaust-cavity land outlet J', which reverses the action of' the piston B, causing it to mov'e to the position -it is shown approximating by arrow in tig. 2, where it is represented as having nearly reached thc-opposite end of vthe cylinder, and as about or nearly so to lift the puppet-valve I, in. order to admit steam, by theopcning e, to the opposite end of the valve, for the pnrposcof throwing it in the reverse direction, and thereby admitting steam, by the passage F, cavity c, and opening f, to the opposite end of the piston I3, and opening the cylinder A to the exhaust-outlet J bythe passage F', valvespace d, and cavity J, the main valve, it may be, being similarly checked in its throw by escape of steam through the contracted aperture i and passage h, as it was in moving in the opposite direction by the passage Il" and aperture z". g

Thus it will be seen that not only are all the working parts which control the motion of' the main valve boxed in or enclosed, thereby doing away with outside connection and leakage through stuffing-boxes, but valvegear of any description is dispensed witln'vand the piston, by'its direct action or lift on the puppet-valves, alternately at opposite ends, made to operate the main valve, so as to rev/erse the action ofthe engine, and keep up a continuons reciprocating movement. The puppet-valves close of their own weight after the piston has passed them, or they may be shut bysprngs or by extraneous weight or pressure, as desired.

I do not claim broadly operating the valves, which admit steam to throw the main valve, by means of the piston of the engine; but

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is I The arrangement of the puppet-valves I I with relation to main valve D, steam-passage H, and piston B,

in such manner as to dispense with all outer cennection therewith, substantially as shown and described.

ISAAC i CHURCH, JR.'

Witnesses:

Asn SMITH, JOHN ROBERTS, 

